Immunities of state officials are a subject matter in international law that continues to raise tensions between States. The seventy-sixth session of the International Law Commission (ILC) will take place in Geneva from April 14 to May 30 and June 30 to July 31, 2025. One of the topics to be discussed on the agenda is the Immunity of State Officials from Foreign Criminal Jurisdiction. In the current ILC program, the immunity of state officials is the longest-running topic. In the upcoming 76th session, Claudio Grossman Guiloff will present his second report as Special Rapporteur. One of the most contentious aspects of his report is Draft Article 7, which currently states the following: Crimes under international law in respect of which immunity ratione materiae shall not apply 1. Immunity ratione materiae from the exercise of foreign criminal jurisdiction shall not apply in respect of the following crimes under international law: (a) crime of genocide; (b) crimes against humanity; (c) war…
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Three Legal Issues on First Reading of Resolution 2773 (2025) on Eastern DRC
Introduction In this post, I explore three legal issues pertaining to Resolution 2773 (2025), adopted by the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) on 21 February 2025 in relation to the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). This resolution addresses the ongoing offensive of the armed group M23 in the DRC, which started in January 2025…
A Tiny Bit of Progress in the Midst of Major Impasse – Revamping the UN Security Council’s Focal Point Mechanism for Sanctions
While the international legal order as we know it seems to be tilting to a more anarchic mode, incremental changes to the UN system of collective security and specifically the UN Security Council are still materializing. In the year that Russia started the war against Ukraine, which resulted in the Council’s paralysis on many fronts, a landmark Resolution…
Undoing the Grand Bargain? Pax Americana and the United Nations
Since its 3 February 2025 Executive Order, the United States has engaged in a series of decisions to either pause or entirely remove funding for various international organizations and agencies within the United Nations system, including withdrawing from the World Health Organization, withdrawing from the United Nations Human Rights Council, the 90-day pause in…
The United Nations’ First Military Manual (and its contribution to International Law): An overview
In September 2024, the United Nations published the United Nations Military Manual (hereinafter the Manual), as «a reference to guide United Nations military unit commanders, staff and troops in predeployment preparation, planning and the efficient conduct of operations for the effective execution of Security Council mandates» (foreword).